Once described as the “conscience” of St. Paul’s parks, Peggy Lynch spent nearly 30 years leading Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County to push for protection of green space in the city.

Founded by Lynch and others in 1985, Friends of the Parks and Trails pushed for a conservation of and access to parks at a time when “…developers had no obligation to contribute to the park system. Cities such as Saint Paul sold parkland for a dollar per parcel,” according to a 2013 congressional record brought forward by U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum in recognition of Lynch.

The year of its founding, the group initiated a study of parks in St. Paul and Ramsey County, “during a period of intense developer interest in prime park land,” according to the record. As a result of the study, park commissions were established in St. Paul and Ramsey County and an amendment of their charters was eventually approved, creating a “no net loss” of park land.

“The city cannot, by law, sell any part of any park property without replacing,” said her son Dan Lynch.

Lynch died Tuesday at the age of 90.

‘What government should be doing for you’

Born in Chicago on Dec. 30, 1933, Lynch moved to St. Paul as a young child, growing up in the Midway area. From the time she was a child, she knew all the parks in St. Paul, Dan Lynch said, where she and her two sisters grew up biking.

She attended Wilson High School and St. Catherine University, studying occupational therapy, but it was a high school class on civics that most moved her, her son Tim Lynch said. It was there she learned about how the government operates and “how it’s supposed to operate,” he said.

“And she always credited that teacher with teaching her how to get involved, how to do things and what government should be doing for you,” Tim Lynch said.

After graduating, Lynch worked as an occupational therapist, before she stopped to raise her four children full time. She eventually joined the St. Paul League of Women Voters which she credited with helping her learn about politics and the political process, said daughter Teri Miska, a process which Lynch would later navigate as an advocate.

Weekends with her children were spent outside and being active, from skiing and sledding to golfing and cycling and she played almost every sport, her children said. Despite her short stature, there are photos of her playing basketball.

A parks advocate

It would be as part of the Pig’s Eye Coalition in the early 1980s that Lynch first ventured into the protection of parks, and fought the St. Paul Port Authority’s attempt to disturb Pig’s Eye Island where native birds nested.

RELATED: For 25 years, the gentle conscience of St. Paul’s parks

Friends of the Parks and Trails was eventually established in 1985 with a $25,000 startup grant from the St. Paul Foundation. Lynch would serve as the executive director for 28 years.

Park systems are dependent on elected officials who care, but the Friends made parks part of the discussion at the political level, said Jeanne Weigum, one of the founders of the group.

Once a park is established, the assumption might be that it’s protected from development, but a constant vigilance is needed, said former St. Paul city council member Kiki Sonnen.

“Peggy knew the importance to our mental health, to our environmental health, of having trees and parkland and quiet spaces. Places to play, places to bike, places to sit and contemplate,” said Amy Gage, former Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County executive director.

In May 2013, the St. Paul Parks and Recreation Commission passed a resolution honoring Lynch, acknowledging her work with Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County and role in the planting of over 6,000 trees in St. Paul and Ramsey County parks through the group’s annual tree sale.

Staying active and involved

In addition to her work advocating for park preservation, Lynch was an avid reader and cribbage player who loved to travel and take regular visits to Como Zoo with her children and grandchildren.

Lynch also stayed active and involved in the Friends of Parks and Trails following her retirement in 2013, attending a dedication in May to Peggy’s Grove — a planting of 14 trees in Frogtown Park and Farm. Though a resident of Highland Park, it was important to Lynch to have the trees in Frogtown which has a low tree canopy, Gage said.

In May, the St. Paul park system celebrated its 175th anniversary. With 184 parks and 5,000 acres of parkland it is one of the most celebrated municipal park systems in the nation.

“So it’s an important thing that Peggy started with the parks and trails. We hope we can keep following in her footsteps,” Sonnen said.

Lynch is survived by her four children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

A funeral will be held at 11 a.m., Tuesday, on Sept. 3, at Lumen Christi Catholic Community church in Highland Park. Visitation will be at 10 a.m.

Related Articles

Lake Nokomis beaches remain closed after sanitary sewer spill; here are other swimming options

St. Paul gunman pleads guilty to fatally shooting teen during North End drug deal

Estranged wife of DOC commissioner charged with attempted murder of their adult son

Charges against St. Paul woman stemming from girl’s shooting dismissed

St. Paul woman charged in fatal Maplewood hit-and-run